Program:

Attr. Darvish Khan (1872-1926)
Arranged by Kousha Nakhaei
Hossein Dehlavi
Arr. K. Nakhaei
Hossein Dehlavi
Arr. K. Nakhaei

Another composition by Dehlavi, Sabokbāl literally means light-winged, and refers to the dance-like nature of this composition. The main theme of this piece is taken from a shepherd dance from the reigon on Ghāsem-Ābad in northern Iran.
Mohammad-Reza Fayyaz
Arr. Kousha Nakhaei

This piece was released as part of a collection of pieces for Iranian Instrumental Ensemble by M.R. Fayyaz. Originally written for a kamanche quartet, in this concert we hear it with golha style orchestration. Fayyaz is among the generation of Iranian music composers who set out to discover and use polyphonic composition techniques that are derived from Iranian dastgah (modal) theories instead of merely borrowing from Western idioms.
Reza Vali
Arr. Kousha Nakhaei

Ashoob (Calligraphy No. 14) is the fourteenth set of an ongoing cycle of works based on the Persian modal system, the Dastgâh, which I have been composing since 2000. The basic compositional material of the work is derived from a fast –tempo genre, called the Reng, which is usually performed at the end of a traditional Persian music concert.
Reza Vali
Ali Tajvidi
Lyrics:
Arr. K. Nakhaei
Ahmad Pejman
Hooshyar Khayyam

Stained Glass (for piano and strings) was composed by Hooshyar Khayam 2006. Moving beyond the familiar structures of musical forms like the concerto, this piece presents a unique texture and aims to showcase the expressive capabilities of the string instruments. The work is directly inspired by the intricate, patterned stained-glass windows (Gereh-Chini) found in traditional Iranian architecture.
In Stained Glass, the string texture begins with a unifying unison performance, immediately evoking a lyrical melody that continuously transforms and shifts in color throughout the piece. Meanwhile, the solo piano acts as the Orosi (the large sash window) and the Gereh-Chini (the intricate latticework), through which the lyrical strain of the strings is persistently heard. These two distinct textures ultimately converge in a final section in agreement and unity
Rouhollah Khaleghi (
Lyrics: Rahi Mo’ayeri (

Artist Bios:

Kousha Nakhaei is a conductor, violinist, kamanche player, and educator. He co-directs Sarv Music Academy, a music education centre he co-founded in 2013, curating a multifaceted music education program. He serves as the artistic director for Canadian Golha Orchestra, Sarv Strings and Sarv Choir and regularly arranges music for these groups. As an instrumentalist, he has performed with artists such as Sepideh Raissadat, Ali Rostamian, Naser Masoudi, and Loreena McKennitt. He has toured in Canada and the US with the Sarv Ensemble, Canadian Arabic Orchestra, and Canadian Golha Orchestra. He recently completed an intensive conducting course with Kenneth Keisler.

Habib Hoseini is a Persian classical singer living in Canada. He was one of 35 young singers selected by the renowned master Mohammad Reza Shajarian in a 2007 audition to attend Shajarian’s vocal technique and repertoire classes. He continued his studies with ostad Shajarian for seven years. Habib has performed at multiple international venues as a soloist and has recorded albums in collaboration with both Persian and international musicians. He has also been invited to perform at several prominent music festivals and events, including the Tirgan opening ceremony in 2017 and the music departments of McMaster and Alberta Universities in 2018. Additionally, he received a grant from Centre des Musiciens du Monde and Conseil des Arts de Montreal to perform an eight-concert tour in Montreal during 2019-2020. Habib’s singing is rooted in Persian classical and folk music; however, living in Canada has allowed him to expand his experience through collaborations with musicians from diverse cultures and nationalities, including English, French, Turkish, and Arab artists. Habib also holds a Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence and has an extensive background in automatic audio, speech, and music signal processing and analysis.

Born in Tehran, Bijan Sepanji is a Canadian-Iranian performer and educator based in Toronto, Canada. As a member of the Ton Beau String Quartet, Bijan regularly performs new compositions by Canadian composers alongside well-known classical works by 18th, 19th, and 20th-century composers. So far, he has performed concerts across Canada, as well as in China, Turkey, Iran, Italy, and the USA. In the past two seasons, Bijan has played numerous concerts and given masterclasses with The Ton Beau at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, and in Chicago, Illinois. Additionally, Bijan has also performed a violin recital and conducted workshops in his hometown at the University of Tehran, as part of a composition competition for the university's students. Having studied at Indiana and McGill universities, Bijan’s orchestral experience includes performances with the Indianapolis and Kitchener-Waterloo symphonies, as well as with Sinfonia Toronto, Espirit Orchestra (Toronto), London Symphonia, Hamilton Philharmonic, and the Toronto Concert Orchestra.

Narek is a pianist with a Master's Degree in Piano Performance from the University of Toronto. Teaching since 2011, he has guided students of all levels through concerts, exams, competitions, and auditions, offering personalized and effective instruction. He also holds a Bachelor's Degree in Piano Performance from the Komitas State Conservatory of Yerevan, where he graduated with the prestigious Red Diploma. Narek is a first prize winner of the Youth National Music Competition in Iran and a recipient of the Alice & Armen Matheson Entrance Scholarship at the University of Toronto. He has performed internationally as a soloist, chamber musician, and accompanist, with notable appearances across Canada, Armenia, and Iran.

COMPOSERS

Canadian Golha Orchestra

Conductor: Kousha Nakhaei

Violin 1:

Bijan Sepanji (Concertmaster)
Aysel Taghi-zada
Elena Spanu

Violin 2:
Saba Yousefi
Rezan Onen-Lapointe

Viola:
Rae Gallimore
Matt Antal

Cello:
Emma Scmiedecke
Niki Khabbazvahed

Double Bass:
Daniel Lalonde

Flute:
Rana Mireskandari

Clarinet:
Peter Stoll

Tar:
Shahin Fayaz

Tonbak:
Sasan Salaseli

Piano:
Narek Ebrahimi

Hadi Milanloo is a PhD candidate in Ethnomusicology at University of Toronto. His doctoral work explores the music and lives of female instrumentalists who perform Iranian classical music in Tehran to examine the intersections of music, gender, and resistance/resilience in Iran. He works towards an ethnomusicological approach that accounts for both aesthetic contributions and social activism of Iranian female musicians. Before joining the University of Toronto, Hadi completed his MA studies at Memorial University, where his Major Research Project focused on the musical life stories of eight Iranian émigré women in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Additionally, he has earned his first MA in Art Studies at the University of Tehran. Hadi is also a musician (Bachelor of Music, University of Tehran) and has studied Setar and the radif of Iranian Classical Music with Ostad Dariush Talai and Hamid Sokuti, among others.